With Florida lawmakers feuding with the traditional early presidential voting states of Iowa and South Carolina, the chairman of the Republican Party of Florida has proposed a compromise.

Chairman Dave Bitner is now advocating “moving the primary into late February, making Florida fifth on the calendar,” saying this would satisfy both the national party’s desire for an “orderly primary calendar” and Florida’s desire for its own special place in the sun.

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The proposal, though, is unlikely to satisfy GOP officials in South Carolina and Iowa, who have said there should be no deviation from the calendar that the RNC spent years hammering out in an effort to control the chaotic presidential caucus and primary process.

Under the RNC’s rules, only Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada are permitted to hold their 2012 presidential nominating contests before March. Florida’s primary is currently scheduled for Jan. 31.

Leaders of the state’s Republican-controlled Legislature have said they’re willing to move the date later and go fifth, but they want Florida to get attention with a privileged pre-Super Tuesday primary.

“I commend our Legislature for standing up for Florida voters, by ensuring we have an early voice in the presidential primary process,” Bitner said. “Florida … provides the perfect litmus test for selecting the most viable Republican presidential nominee” and “is critically important to the 2012 presidential election.”

Bitner said he – along with Florida’s Republican Gov. Rick Scott, Senate President Mike Haridopolos and House Speaker Dean Cannon – were willing “to work with the RNC to find a primary date that both respects the calendar while preserving Florida’s role in the process.”

Still, primary calendar expert Josh Putnam, a professor at North Carolina’s Davidson College, wrote on his Frontloading HQ blog that Bitner’s statement “doesn’t end this saga; it only keeps it going.”

Florida is still asking the RNC to tweak its rules, Putnam observed. “If the rules can be bent for Florida, why not in New York or Michigan or Wisconsin?” he asked.

Readers' Comments (16)

God willing he should win New Hampshire..........Nevada..........and Florida..........3 out of the 5 first contests.....

Of course our dirty dishonest liberal/progressive MSM wolfpack press will be howling at him the whole time.......they KNOW they can't allow Romney to win the GOP nomination because their hero, Obama will be One N Done.........

Romney will be catching flack from the extreme right-wing too..........Murdoch isn't a Romney fan and some on Fox like Brit Hume and Chris Wallace have been after Romney...........O'Reilly, Hannity, and Drudge are about the only news outlets that are neutral our favorable to Romney........

We Americans must make sure we fire the left-ist idelogue we have now, Obama, and make sure we don't replace him with an extreme right-wing ideolgue............otherwise nothing will get done in 2012......

We need to hire a smart clean solid proven Fiscal Conservative that will focus on the real issues

1. jobs

2. growing the economy

3. addressing the massive deficits

4. entitlement reforms.........which will feed into long term deficit reduction....

Romney/ Rubio................if you want someone to ............fix America.......the record is clear.

Well, I for one am interested. I wrote the head of the RNC, all the interested parties in Florida about a month ago when this issue first came up. There is a lot to be said for bucking the system, pushing for the spotlight and forcing the RNC to become more relevant. I say go for it ...BUT NOT NOW.

Nothing in the world is more important to me than getting Obama out of office and the Dem's out of control of the Senate. If those who know a great deal more about these things say that clustering the primaries will risk over exposing the front runners, then I too worry about Florida's move. What that also says to me is that our front runners are not going to do well under lengthy and very close scrutiny.

Since our party is unable to find excellent candidates who are fresh, don't bow to the far right, have experience and are well regarded - and want the job - then we are toast. Newt is NEVER going to win, Romney? Are you serious? That guy is pretty but lacks backbone. He's just a slightly more conservative person that Obama. He is a progressive Republican.

Florida is shamefully focused on the wrong agenda. They have the convention - sadly - but if they do this I think they should be barred from having a convention again for a long time.

So Florida, stop grandstanding. You are acting childish. Focus on 2016 and work between now and then to shift things/shake them up/whatever. Your egos and needs are SECONDARY to booting the bum out of the WH.

Well, I for one am interested. I wrote the head of the RNC, all the interested parties in Florida about a month ago when this issue first came up. There is a lot to be said for bucking the system, pushing for the spotlight and forcing the RNC to become more relevant. I say go for it ...BUT NOT NOW.

Nothing in the world is more important to me than getting Obama out of office and the Dem's out of control of the Senate. If those who know a great deal more about these things say that clustering the primaries will risk over exposing the front runners, then I too worry about Florida's move. What that also says to me is that our front runners are not going to do well under lengthy and very close scrutiny.

Since our party is unable to find excellent candidates who are fresh, don't bow to the far right, have experience and are well regarded - and want the job - then we are toast. Newt is NEVER going to win, Romney? Are you serious? That guy is pretty but lacks backbone. He's just a slightly more conservative person that Obama. He is a progressive Republican.

Florida is shamefully focused on the wrong agenda. They have the convention - sadly - but if they do this I think they should be barred from having a convention again for a long time.

So Florida, stop grandstanding. You are acting childish. Focus on 2016 and work between now and then to shift things/shake them up/whatever. Your egos and needs are SECONDARY to booting the bum out of the WH.

Well, Iowa has its spot today because it has had its spot for so long...there isn't anthing UNIQUE about Iowa that says it should go first.

But at the same time, it is a good state to lead the pack, because it ensures that there is still some discussion about heartland values. Imagine if one of the big states went first: all we'd hear about was money.

Florida deserves to be spotlighted. It is, after all, a pretty good and diverse litmus test for Republican candidates. Given their likely candidates who will look less and less good under scrutiny, I can see why the RNC doesn't want the extra time, spotlight and scrutiny. The many factions within the Republican Party are simmering and will be boiling before too long. Each intra-party squabble will raise the temperature a bit. If most Republican would-be candidates don't chicken out this political cycle from the understandable fear of facing the mighty Obama, then we can probably expect the most rancorous and divisive Republican race in a century -- perhaps ever.

So far the republican idiots that got swept into office in november haven't created a single job, but instead have dwelled on Planned Parenthood, NPR, Defense of Marriage, launching a witch hunt on muslims and trying how to repeal healthcare. Where are the promised jobs? Where is the balanced budget? Why is Boehner dithering on this?

In the meantime, while the republicans slept, the POTUS economic policies created nearly a half million private sector jobs in Feb and March. Maybe that's the GOP plan, do nothing, and when the presidents plan works, they can somehow spin it to seem like they had something to do with it.

If this is what it's like when republicans take one side of the house, we owe it to the health of the nation to throw all of them out that we can in 2012 before they destroy the country or turn it over to private control. I'm not even going to go into what's going on in Michigan, Wisconsin, Florida, Ohio and elsewhere. Their day of judgement will come much sooner, maybe Nov. 2011.

South Carolina as some set of globes, they think Lindsay Graham is a Republican. Therefore they are incapable of a sound decision.

Florida is now one of the most Conservative States. Texas and Florida will lead the United Southern States of America in cleaning up the liberal mess. Lets move the Capital to Dallas, Houston, Orlando or Tampa and rule "Southern Style" Wack-up DC between MD and VA, whoever draws the short straw. If neither want it, make DC it its own country, and build a wall around it. Time to get back to sanity.

Big states should definitely be later on. Florida having an early primary doesn't allow all candidates a fair chance to win the nomination. A full Florida strategy costs millions.

Since we're on this topic, I want to say something about Iowa. Iowa should be forced to have their caucus on a later date as well. Iowa going first allows Christians to infiltrate the party and hype up their social-based platform/control your life platform.

RepublicanConscience - Please don't tease me. Would you REALLY promise to go away and take the South with you? We promise not to fight and try to keep you this time. That was a HUGE mistake. "Y'all" been nothing but a drain financially and intellectually on this country since we made you stay. You could join forces with Iran or other theocracies. (They do beheadings, you'd like that I'm sure). Your ignorant blathering and totally lack of knowledge of fundamental economics and ..well everything...means you and the Tea Party and associated yokels are nothing more than an aging, useless drag on the country. With you gone we will be able to cut spending the proper way as we pay much less in welfare (for the young and for old folks like you, which we call "Social Security.") as well as all the other welfare we pay to the southern states. Please, please, please go away! We'll love ya forever. But please don't tease us like this if you don't really mean it.